Famous Pipers: A View of Pipe Major GS McLennan from Before the First World War

Much has been written about the celebrated piper George S McLennan, lauded not only for his brilliant playing but also his masterful compositions. This account we believe is from the Oban Times. It does not have a precise date as our copy is obscure, but from reading it it was clearly published several years in advance of the outbreak of war in 1914. It is important to us in that…

Entries Open for SPA Juvenile and Professional Contests/ New Contest for Ireland

The Scottish Pipers’ Association committee meeting last week decided to go live with the online entry for both our SPA Professional (22nd April) and Juvenile competitions (18th March), writes President Logan Tannock. Entries for the professional competition will be limited to 25 per grade on a first come first served basis. Entries £10 per event. SPA memberships (£20) required. The professional contests in all grades will be in the Piping…

Editor’s Notebook: Angus Campbell/ Sun Belt Amateurs/ Lorient Festival

Thanks to Josh Dickson for the following re the above photograph we featured last week. Josh writes: ‘The photo in question is indeed Angus Campbell at the age of 10 – 12. It graced the front cover of my 2006 book, ‘When Piping was Strong: Tradition, Change, and the Bagpipe in South Uist’, in which I detailed a great deal of information on Angus, his peers, and the wider piping…

World Class Instruction at McIntosh Workshop / Latest ‘Talk Piobaireachd’ Session Tonight

Pittsburgh Piping Society (PPS) and Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) will host the inaugural Jimmy McIntosh MBE Piobaireachd Workshop from February 24-26, 2023. The workshop will be held at the University’s Cohen University Center. Participation is reserved for pipers in competitive Grade 3 and above. Pipers in Grades 4 and 5, and members of the public, may register as ‘observers only’ as space allows. The weekend begins on Friday 24th Feb….

Northern Ireland Report: Ashley and Bradley Star in London/ Certificates Awarded/ Jason at Blackthorn/ Band Fundraising

It was great to see pupils from a number of County Down schools amongst the recipients of the foundation certificates for piping and drumming awarded by the Ulster-Scots Agency and the Royal Scottish Pipe Band Association (NI). The Great Hall at Parliament Buildings, Stormont, was the setting for this event.  The young people attended as part of a joint tuition programme developed by the Agency and the RSPBANI branch, initially to…